Global population growth and economic development in emerging countries have increased the demand for meat, triggering a “protein crisis” as protein demand exceeds supply. The imbalance between demand and supply is projected to become critical by 2030. Now, an unassuming savior, duckweed, stands ready to help solve this global crisis.
A high-protein, fast-growing aquatic plant has recently been garnering worldwide attention as a potential miracle food. Wolffia, known also as watermeal, is a rootless, free-floating species of duckweed found mainly in Southeast Asia. Today, this humble plant enjoys rising expectations as an alternative protein source to meat and soybeans.
Floatmeal Co., Ltd., a startup company headquartered in Hokkaido, Japan’s largest food production region, hopes to promote duckweed as a solution to the global protein crisis. Wolffia plants can double in quantity daily under the right conditions of temperature, water, and microorganism population. Wolffia’s environmental impact is remarkably low, as it uses only 1/230 the water and 1/63 the land required for soybean cultivation. Its protein content, on the other hand, is high: 36 to 40% compared with about 34% for soybeans and 28% for broccoli. It is also rich in vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber. All these attributes make wolffia a focus of attention as a potential superfood to replace conventional protein sources.
Wolffia, with a diameter of about 1 mm the world’s tiniest vegetable, grows naturally in Southeast Asia. In Thailand, where it has long served as a food source, it is called kainam (“water eggs”).
Not only does wolffia production have a low environmental impact, but the plant itself absorbs carbon dioxide. Thus, an increase in production could also help alleviate factors contributing to climate change. Floatmeal’s vision is “to address food security and climate change problems through sustainable production.” In other words, the company seeks to help solve two crises, the protein shortage and global warming, with one product.
A distinctive feature of Floatmeal’s wolffia production technology is the use of microorganisms to promote growth. KITAMURA Moana, representative director of Floatmeal, explains: “Wolffia grows naturally in freshwater in regions like Southeast Asia, coexisting with various microorganisms in the natural world. In order to develop it as a food source, we are exploring effective cultivation methods in our laboratory greenhouse. This includes researching microorganisms that can accelerate wolffia’s growth rate and enhance its nutritional value.”
Floatmeal was established when Kitamura, who was studying the impact of global warming on marine ecosystems at Hokkaido University, met Sajjad Kamal Shuvro, a student from Bangladesh studying microbiology and environmental science at the university’s graduate school. The technology of using microorganisms in the cultivation of wolffia originated from pioneering research conducted by Hokkaido University’s Morikawa Laboratory, with which Shuvro was affiliated. Now Chief Technology Officer of Floatmeal, Shuvro is working to further develop this technology to enable mass production of wolffia.
Representative Director KITAMURA Moana (right) and Chief Technology Officer Sajjad Kamal Shuvro (left) of Floatmeal Co., Ltd.
Wolffia grown in the lab can either be marketed fresh or processed into powder. Fresh wolffia tastes like lettuce, while powdered wolffia has a mild, matcha-like flavor that makes it easy on the taste buds. “Wolffia’s pleasant look and taste can be called advantages when compared to many alternative foods,” says Kitamura. Currently, Floatmeal is receiving inquiries from dozens of food manufacturers, not only in Hokkaido but nationwide. Among the product applications being considered are protein drinks, noodles, and confections.
Whether fresh or powdered, wolffia lends itself to utilization in a wide variety of foods, ranging from beverages to Japanese, Chinese, and other cuisines.
Floatmeal is also moving ahead with plans to set up multiple 1-hectare-scale production facilities in Thailand by 2027. “Wolffia has been popular as an edible plant in Thailand for over 100 years,” says Kitamura. “By providing our cultivation technology to local farmers, we can grow wolffia’s market and import it to Japan. Eventually, we want to expand to Western countries where there is not only high interest in the protein crisis and climate change, but also a large vegetarian market. Our goal is to improve the overall quality of protein food sources through our product.”
Through its production facilities in Thailand, Kitamura adds, the company envisions expanding wolffia use into areas beyond food, such as applying it to carbon credits that quantify and trade the amounts contributed to greenhouse gas emission reduction and absorption, and generating biofuels and bioplastics using the plant. The day when wolffia becomes a part of our daily lives may not be far off at all.
Floatmeal Representative Director Kitamura Moana cultivates wolffia, a high-protein duckweed, in a greenhouse in Abira Town, Hokkaido. She maintains the plant’s growth environment by injecting nutrient solutions and managing water quality.
